Tag: book map

Today marks a very important day in literary history for two separate, but wildly related reasons: February 2nd is both Irish author James Joyce’s 136th birthday and the 96th anniversary of the publication of Joyce’s magnum opus, Ulysses.

Ulysses was published on February 2, 1922 and was received with very mixed reviews. Some hailed the book as being a sheer masterpiece, while many others found it to be lewd, crude, and pornographic, going so far as to have the book banned until a trial entitled The United States v. One Book Called Ulysses lifted said ban in 1934. Today, it continues to top the charts as being one of the most important novels of the 20th century, and possibly of all time.

Throughout the novel, our two main characters: Leopold Bloom and Stephen Dedalus, find themselves exploring the city of Dublin throughout the course of a single day. Each chapter of the book recalls a new hour of the day (paralleling and retelling Homer’s The Odyssey, of course), and also takes us to a new section of the city.

Joyce had been living in Paris for years during the writing of this novel, and his ability to recount specific details of his home city (right down to street intersections!) is beyond impressive, because each location mentioned actually exists within the city. June 16th, known as “Bloomsday,” is the day our characters find themselves venturing out. On that same day, all of these years later, Joyce lovers flock to Dublin and tour the famous locations seen in Ulysses.

You too can visit Dublin with or without a tour guide, and follow Dedalus and Bloom’s odyssey by following this comprehensive map! Each location is marked with a helpful pin, and provides details on the novel’s chapters that correspond to said pins.

So grab yourself a Guinness, and celebrate the birth of James Joyce coupled with the anniversary of Ulysses in a way that might make even the most cantankerous of literary geniuses proud!

Virginia Woolf may not have written adventure novels that sprawl across continents, but she still put a great deal of care in her settings. Often, that setting is London. Of her ten novels, only half take place mostly in London, though all make regular mention of it. If you don’t believe me, take Londonist’s word for it, because they’ve completely mapped out Woolf’s ten novels. Everywhere she mentions gets a little pin on Google Maps, along with a reference to where it was mentioned in which book. Check that map out here!

One thing that immediately sticks out is that, though Woolf is known for her characters’ rich interiority, her books are surprisingly globetrotting. Eight novels make mention of Paris, Rome, and Venice, while Jacob’s Room alone goes through India, Myanmar, and Singapore.

Of course, most of her work takes place in London, but even then you can see some interesting tendencies. For one, Woolf rarely ventures outside of the West End. She mentions the East End only four times and they are mostly depictions of a low quality of life. Still, Woolf is a true Londoner as the map verifies.

Londonist’s breakdown goes into depth on what locations are mentioned with frequency, etc., so check that out here!

The world of A Song of Ice and Fire is so mind-bendingly large, it’s hard to keep track of who was where when. Wait, where was Arya when Bran became the Three-Eyed Raven? Oh, hold up, was Jaime in King’s Landing when Davos was in Braavos? Also, just knowing where Braavos is in relation to King’s Landing is so hard when you’re staring at a bunch of words on a page. And, if you’re watching the show, then the spinny map intro thing is really not much help. It’s all twisty and confusing.

Luckily, a few diehard fans have created an interactive map to help everybody keep track of their favorite characters. If you’ve just begun the books or are only a few seasons into the show, you can adjust your favorite character’s path across the world based on what chapter (of which book!) you’re up to, or which episode you’re on. You won’t be spoiled!

Part of the fun of reading a fantasy series like GRRM’s is designing the world in your own head. The show does a good job of replacing the reader’s aesthetic with professional design. Because of the show you can see the dragons fly like falcons and that the clothing of the Iron Isles is Viking-y. But the readers lose something. Their, you know, imagination.

This tool is a great balance of providing a totally helpful visual aid to the reader while still allowing people to retain their own conception of GRRM’s world. Kudos to the creators! Now they just have to update it to have all of season seven…

Site links

About Us

Bookstr connects books with people. We make discovering books entertaining, informative, and socially engaging. And most importantly, we believe that the best recommendations come from people you know and trust.

Newsletter Subscription

If you want to subscribe to our monthly newsletter, please submit the form below.